Map shows where we’ll get one last summer hurrah as mini-heatwave hits

For those who have their cosy jumpers and Halloween decorations at the ready, we have some bad news for you.

Summer is throwing one final heat wave at the UK, with most of central England turning red on Friday. Something welcome given how miserable this week has been.

The heat will remain in the high 20s for most of this weekend, according to the independent weather forecasting service Netweather.

Behind this mini heat wave is a wave of humid air crawling on over from the east.

‘This warm air will bring a lot of low cloud and murk in from the North Sea so don’t assume that it will be sunny,’ says Jo Farrow, a senior forecaster at Netweather.

‘Where it is, it will be glorious with light winds in the north.’

The humid air from Germany and Poland will reach England on Thursday, with forecasters saying that the country’s thermostat could be cranked up to the high 20s from then on.

Western Scotland, the Lake District, Merseyside and Manchester, meanwhile, may see as high as 25°C.

Friday evening will feel warm in the north and fair in the south.

Life, however, is all about balance. Though a big chunk of Britain will be baked by high temperatures, London and most of east and south will see rain – and a lot of it.

So much so that the Met Office issued a yellow weather warning. Active from 12am to 11.59pm, the alert warns that heavy rains of up to 100mm may cause travel disruption and flooding.

Weather officials warn that road closures, train disruptions and bus cancellations could all happen over this period. Some communities may even be cut off due to flooded roads.

This warning follows another issued for today and tomorrow covering south Wales as well as most of southeast England and London.

As Netweather explains, the wet and winder weather affecting the south is due to a ‘huge buckle’ in the jet stream – a massive swirl of wind that blows from west to east in the upper levels of the atmosphere.

This, in other words, is what you can blame for needing an umbrella on Friday.

Netweather adds: ‘Southern Britain looks most at risk of rain after bands of wet weather lurk in the English Channel on Thursday and Friday.

‘At the weekend, to the north of this unsettled weather, there will be the chance of fine weather and warmth but it could be subdued by low cloud and even damp conditions off the North Sea.’

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